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R u I e S 0 f T h U ill h (conti nued) MITER SHOOTI NG BOARD Sawn miters often require fine-tuning. That's where the miter shooting board comes in handy. Two 45° fences made of hardwood support the workpiece as it is trimmed with a jack plane. % % by Fences, 1 in. thick by 1% in. wide, glued and screwed to the platform at 45° to the planing step Platform, 1% in. thick (two pieces of %-in.-thick Baltic-birch plywood) by 7 in. wide by 24 in. long Hardwood insert, % in. thick by 2% in. wide Dust trap, in. deep in. wide Planing step, deep by 2 in. wide, is rabbeted into the hardwood insert. % is glued and screwed to the underside of the platform. 'A. fence to guide a backsaw. Lay out the kerfs with pencil lines and cut them by hand with a backsaw. Just make sure that the kerfs aren't any wider than the blade on the handsaw you plan to use with the jig, or sloppy miters will result. Miter shooting board finishes the job-Cuts made at the miter block generally are rough. So I use a second bench hooka miter shooting board-to tune miters to a perfect 450• I made mine from two stacked pieces of >,s-in.-thick Baltic-birch plywood, which is relatively stable. I glued a strip of hardwood in the location of the planing step, which allows me to true up the jig after construction without having to use a handplane on plywood. Like my other workbench accessories, the shooting board is designed to hook the 118 FINE WOODWORKI G Hook (one on each end), in. thick by % in. wide, How much should you cut? Any material that extends beyond the stop block will be trimmed away. Use your layout lines as a guide. in. edge of the bench during use. However, it requires a hook on both ends because the jig is designed to be reversed for trimming miters in opposite directions. My shooting board sits on the bench at a tilt, which isn't a problem; however, you can make it long enough to straddle the bench. Two fences set at 450 (together forming a 90° angle) are secured to the platform with glue and screws. Care should be taken to ensure that the fences are accurate, because they serve as a reference for all subsequent cuts made at the shooting board. A step rabbeted into the edge of the shooting board, as on my standard bench hook, is used to guide a hand plane. It also has a small groove for dust accumulation. When using the miter shooting board, I generally align the layout line of the miter with the end of the fence on the shooting board. Any material that extends into the path of the plane will be trimmed off. Hold the stock snug against the fence, and pass the plane over the stock with repeated strokes until it stops cutting. Other tips for using a shooting board-To keep a plane cutting smoothly on a shooting board, apply wax to all of the working surfaces of the plane and bench hook. It also is important that the plane's side be perpendicular to the sole and that you tune up the plane correctly for the task. Align the plane blade parallel with its sole, and adjust it for a light cut. Always make sure the side of the plane is firmly registered on tl1e planing step. When trimming harsh end grain, which tends to dull the blade rapidly, dampen the end grain with water prior to planing. D